TAIPEI: Honduran President Xiomara Castro arrived in Shanghai on Friday on her first visit since China established ties with her nation, pulling it away from former diplomatic ally Taiwan.

Castro will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping “to jointly plan for the future development” of ties, China’s official Xinhua News Agency said. She will also attend the inauguration of Honduras’ embassy in Beijing, according to state media.

Honduras established formal relations with China in March, becoming the latest in a string of countries to break diplomatic ties with Taiwan. China sees self-governed Taiwan as a breakaway province, to be retaken by force if necessary, and prohibits its own diplomatic partners from having formal ties with Taipei.

Beijing has intensified its battle to win away Taiwan’s diplomatic allies since independence-leaning Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen took office in 2016.